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Abstract

The progress, and current challenges, in fabricating rare-earth-doped chalcogenide-glass fibers for developing mid-infrared (IR) fiber lasers are reviewed. For the first time a coherent explanation is forwarded for the failure to date to develop a gallium-lanthanum-sulfide glass mid-IR fiber laser. For the more covalent chalcogenide glasses, the importance of optimizing the glass host and glass processing routes in order to minimize non-radiative decay and to avoid rare earth ion clustering and glass devitrification is discussed. For the first time a new idea is explored to explain an additional method of non-radiative depopulation of the excited state in the mid-IR that has not been properly recognized before: that of impurity multiphonon relaxation. Practical characterization of candidate selenide glasses is presented. Potential applications of mid-infrared fiber lasers are suggested.

Fig. 3 (Adapted from [23]. The allowed vibrational energy levels and some transitions between them for a diatomic molecule undergoing anharmonic oscillations.) It is suggested that impurity species such as [As-O], coordinating RE-ions doped into chalcogenide glass hosts, accept energy non-radiatively from the excited RE-ions and in turn undergo vibrational excitation.

Fig. 7 As-prepared 800 ppmw Dy3+-doped Ge16.5 Ga3As16Se64.5 glass exhibits a smooth absorption band at 1.3 μm due to the (6H15/2→ (6H9/2, 6F11/2) absorption of the Dy3+ indicating that the local environment of the Dy3+ ions is amorphous. At the higher doping level of 1500 ppmw Dy3+, the 1.3 μm absorption band shows structuring, indicative of a more ordered local environment and indicating that the glass has undergone unwanted crystallization during the melt-quenching procedure to make the glass.

Tables (1)

Table 1 Collation of the mid-IR emission of RE-ion doped bulk chalcogenide glasses, and fiber, at ≥ 3 μm wavelength. Glasses are in blocks according to their ionic or covalent behavior and the host-glass chalcogen. References are in date-order in each block. Key: - means data are not available.

Metrics

Table 1

Collation of the mid-IR emission of RE-ion doped bulk chalcogenide glasses, and fiber, at ≥ 3 μm wavelength. Glasses are in blocks according to their ionic or covalent behavior and the host-glass chalcogen. References are in date-order in each block. Key: - means data are not available.